Mr Hancock has told The Age in an interview published today that he was staggered the investigators could not locate him.

Their failure to seek his comment was an "incredible lack of natural justice", he said.

"I can only assume that the lack of effort that was made to contact me indicates that I was not a person of significant interest," he said.

Mr Hancock has been widely criticised for what appears to be "jobs-for-mates" appointments made while he was in Ballarat.

In 2004, Mr Hancock hired his former workmate Mike Chiodo as a consultant - giving him a ratepayer-funded car, $612,000 and a senior manager's job never properly recorded in the council's books.

Mr Chiodo's wife also worked as a consultant for a few weeks.

In Mr Hancock's three years at Ballarat, several people who had worked with him at other municipalities scored senior roles.

One was his former Hobson's Bay colleague, Anthony Schinck, who succeeded him as Ballarat CEO.

The government report into Ballarat reached no conclusion on claims the situation was manipulated to favour Mr Schinck.

Last year, Mr Hancock went to Darwin to head the Northern Territory Government's Planning Department.

It has sinced emerged he had appointed Mr Chiodo as general manager of construction in the NT Planning Department.

Mr Hancock intends to take up an invitation from the Victorian Government to discuss his role at Ballarat.

Despite the furore, he is proud of his legacy.

He said his record at Ballarat was one of services delivered, budgets met and strategies developed to guide it into the future.

**Full story in The Age today**